Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders

Set up, operate, or tend paper goods machines that perform a variety of functions, such as converting, sawing, corrugating, banding, wrapping, boxing, stitching, forming, or sealing paper or paperboard sheets into products.

What you'd actually do

• Examine completed work to detect defects and verify conformance to work orders, and adjust machinery as necessary to correct production problems.
• Observe operation of various machines to detect and correct machine malfunctions such as improper forming, glue flow, or pasteboard tension.
• Start machines and move controls to regulate tension on pressure rolls, to synchronize speed of machine components, and to adjust temperatures of glue or paraffin.
• Disassemble machines to maintain, repair, or replace broken or worn parts, using hand or power tools.
• Install attachments to machines for gluing, folding, printing, or cutting.
• Cut products to specified dimensions, using hand or power cutters.

How you get there

Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).

The feel of the work

The work is mostly indoors; time pressure is a real part of the job. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)

Working for yourself

About 1.2% of paper goods machine setters, operators, and tenders are self-employed.

Who it tends to fit

This work tends to fit people who are hands-on and organized and detail-focused.

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Quick questions

How much does a paper goods machine setters, operators, and tender make?

The median pay is $24.17 per hour — roughly $50,500 a year, with the real range running from about $17.93/hr (10th percentile) to $33.81/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Do you need a degree to be a paper goods machine setters, operators, and tender?

The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).

What does a paper goods machine setters, operators, and tender actually do all day?

Examine completed work to detect defects and verify conformance to work orders, and adjust machinery as necessary to correct production problems. Observe operation of various machines to detect and correct machine malfunctions such as improper forming, glue flow, or pasteboard tension. Start machines and move controls to regulate tension on pressure rolls, to synchronize speed of machine components, and to adjust temperatures of glue or paraffin.